ADOLESCENCE: THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA FOR ESCAPE FROM EXISTENTIAL EMPTINESS

Abstract

The study presented considered adolescence, identifying the factors that constitute it and investigating how emotional vulnerability acts at this stage of development. The research addressed the factor of existential emptiness and its impact on the mental health of adolescents, analyzing the psychological mechanisms that link social networks to existential emptiness. Social networks are understood, in this context, as an “escape” from all the emotional suffering caused by the existential emptiness experienced in adolescence, functioning as a means of obtaining external validation. The study was conducted from a psychoanalytic perspective, based on qualitative reviews of scientific articles and relevant theoretical works. Therefore, through the study, it was possible to reflect on adolescence and how unrestrained access to social media negatively impacts the mental health of adolescents.